Life insurance is an essential part of our wealth and estate planning efforts. However, ensuring your loved ones can access our life insurance policies is as crucial as getting one.

According to a study by Consumer Reports, 1 out of every 600 people is the beneficiary of an unclaimed life insurance policy with an average benefit of $2,000; this means about six hundred thousand Americans are beneficiaries of unclaimed life insurance policies worth over $1b. Many people don't realize that there are chances that their life insurance policies may not be accessible to the people they love if the proper steps are not in place. You can take a few simple steps to ensure your policy is accessible to your loved ones when you're gone. Taking these steps will give you peace of mind knowing that your loved ones will be taken care of financially if something happens to you.

Unclaimed life insurance benefits are a billion-dollar industry, with over $1 billion in unclaimed assets yearly.

Here is a list of five things to make sure your loved ones can access your life insurance policy in the event of your death, including appointing a beneficiary, keeping records up to date, and discussing the policy with your family.

1. Appoint a Beneficiary

One way to ensure your loved ones can access your life insurance policy in the event of your death is to appoint a beneficiary. This means you will need to designate someone (or multiple people) responsible for receiving the benefits of your life insurance policy benefits.

2. Keep Records Up To Date with Cova

Another way to ensure your loved ones can access your life insurance policy is to keep records up to date. This includes keeping track of changes in beneficiaries and ensuring all contact information is current.

3. Discuss the Policy with Family Members

It is also essential to discuss the details of your life insurance policy with family members. This will help them understand what they need to do to receive the policy's benefits if something happens to you.

4. Choose an Executor

You may also want to consider choosing an executor for your estate, which includes your life insurance policy is also covered.

5. For peace of mind, set up a Beneficiary using Cova's Lifecheck feature

Cova is a wealth management tool that empowers families like yours to keep track of all their assets in one place and in real-time. This means you have everything you own tracked, manage documents that are important using Cova's Vault. You can set up your Cova account to share your financial data (including information on how to access your life insurance policies) with your loved ones. Create a Cova account free

Appointing a Beneficiary: One of the most important things you can do to ensure your loved ones can access your life insurance policy is to appoint a beneficiary. This person will be responsible for collecting the money from the policy and distributing it according to your wishes.

  1. Appointing a beneficiary is one of the most important things you can do to ensure your loved ones can access your life insurance policy in the event of death.
  2. The beneficiary will be responsible for collecting the money from the policy and distributing it according to your wishes.
  3. It would be best if you chose someone you trust to be your beneficiary, such as a spouse, child, or close friend.
  4. You can contact your life insurance provider and can change your beneficiary at any time.
  5. You can specify how much each person will receive from the policy if you have multiple beneficiaries.

Keeping Records Up To Date: Another essential thing you can do to ensure your loved ones can access your life insurance policy is to keep records up to date. This includes making sure the contact information for both you and your beneficiaries is up to date and keeping track of any changes to the policy itself.

  1. Keep contact information for both you and your beneficiaries up to date.
  2. Track any changes to the policy itself.
  3. Ensure your loved ones know where to find your life insurance policy information.
  4. Keep copies of your life insurance policy in a safe place.
  5. Consider naming a trusted loved one as the primary beneficiary on your life insurance policy.

With Cova, you can securely and digitally track all your life insurance policies and all related documents and notes.

Discussing The Policy With Family Members:

  1. Discussing your life insurance policy with your family members is an essential step in ensuring that they are aware of its existence and can access it in the event of your death.
  2. You should review the policy with them regularly so that they are familiar with any changes that may have been made.
  3. It is also essential to keep all documentation related to the policy up to date and easily accessible.
  4. In the event of your death, your family members will need to contact the life insurance company to file a claim. To do so, they will need information such as the policy number and beneficiaries.
  5. You can help your loved ones by ensuring they know where to find this information and providing them with any instructions you may have left regarding the policy.

Securely plan your wealth and estate and ensure nothing falls within the crack with Cova. Get Started Now